Chapter 22 Chapter Twenty Two

He slept restlessly.He woke up late in the morning to find his worst fears had happened.He had a cold, and when he went to the door to call Pierrot in, he sounded like a crow, and Pierrot appeared. "I'm sick," he moaned. "I've got a fever. I think I'm dying. Bring me some hot wine and something to eat. If I don't die of fever, I'll die of starvation. Bring me a brazier. I'm cold as hell, Where the hell did you die last night?" Piero was about to answer, but Machiavelli stopped him. "Don't explain yet. Later. Later. Bring me some wine."

He felt better after eating and drinking.He listened sullenly as Pierrot explained to him what had happened the night before.Piero said he followed Machiavelli's instructions and waited in the courtyard for over an hour, persevering even though he was drenched in the rain.He waited until Lady Catalina begged him to come in. "Did you tell them what happened?" "I said what you wanted me to tell them, sir." "What did they say?" "They said it was a shame." "They say it's regrettable?" Machiavelli whispered angrily in a hoarse voice. "My God! Consider that it is a pity that God created women to be helpers to men, and they should say that. For things like the death of Hector and the fall of Troy, they What language will be used to describe it?"

"In the end they made me go inside to hide from the rain. My teeth were chattering. They said we could hear you knocking on the door from the kitchen. They took off my wet coat and made me dry myself around the fire .” "And what happened to the fish and the capon?" "We kept them on the stove for a long time and eventually Ms Catalina said it would go bad if we didn't eat any more. We were really hungry." "I was starving as hell." "We've saved some for you. Part fish and half a chicken." "You guys are pretty considerate."

"We heard the clock strike once, then strike again, and then Lady Aurelia went to rest." "What did she do?" Machiavelli asked angrily. "We wanted her to wait a little longer. We said you'd be here in a little while. She said waiting two hours for a man was enough. She said if your career is more important to you than Love between men and women is more important, so even if you have a relationship with you, you can't expect much love between men and women from this relationship." "That doesn't make sense," Machiavelli said in Latin. "She said that if you really loved her as much as you showed, you could find a reason to stop your conversation with the Duke. We argued with her about it."

"It seems that you can still speak clearly with women!" "But she wouldn't listen, so Ms Catalina told me not to wait any longer. She gave me another drink and sent me away." Machiavelli suddenly remembered that Pierrot had no key to enter the door. "Where did you spend the night?" The lad gave him a sly, satisfied smile. "With Nina." "You've had a much better night than me," Machiavelli said sullenly. "But as far as I know, she went back to her parents' house." "That's what she told Caterina. We arranged it early in the morning. She rented a room from Mrs. Barberina, and I could join her as soon as I was free."

Madame Barberina was a madam.She has a well paid and respected business in Imola.For some minutes Machiavelli was silent.He's not the type to accept failure. "Listen, Piero." When he had thought it over, he said to Piero. "That old fool Bartholomew will be back in the evening. We must act quickly, and let us not forget that Zeus, the god of heaven, in pursuit of the beautiful Danae, entered her room in the form of golden rain. From Cal Capelli's merchant's shop, the same shop where I bought gloves for Aurelia, I bought him a blue silk scarf with a silver border, the same one he showed me the other day .Just tell him I will pay back the money once I get it from Florence. Then take the scarf and go to Ms. Caterina. Tell Ms. Caterina to pass the scarf to Aurelia and tell him I I was burned to death by the fire of love, and I caught a cold last night waiting for her. But when I am well, we should find an opportunity to discuss it again and make a new plan to meet the wishes of Aurelia and me. "

After Pierrot had gone, Machiavelli waited anxiously for his return to report to him on his mission and reception. "She loves scarves," said Pierrot. "She said the scarf was beautiful and asked how much it cost. She liked it even more when I told her the price." "Very good, very natural, what else?" "I told her you couldn't get out of the palace. She said it didn't matter, and told me to stop thinking about it." "What!" roared Machiavelli angrily. "It seems that a woman is the most irresponsible animal in the world. Doesn't she see that all her future is in one fell swoop? Did you tell her I stood in the rain for a whole hour?"

"I said it, and she said it was very imprudent." "Who would expect a person in love to be cautious? You can ask the sea specifically, will there be no waves on the sea when there is a strong wind in the sky?" "Ms. Katerina wants you to take care of yourself."